Music theory for pianists

The Chordfather Returns: A Pianist’s Guide to Seventh Chords, Cadences, and Musical Forms

2026-06-08T14:37:37+01:00

If music were a language, harmony would be its grammar, cadence its punctuation, and form its storytelling structure. Pianists often spend years mastering scales and finger technique, yet many discover that understanding how music is built transforms the piano from a machine of notes into a vehicle of expression. From the emotional weight of a dominant seventh chord in a Beethoven sonata to the satisfying closure of a perfect cadence in a Chopin nocturne, harmony and structure shape the listener’s emotional journey. This article explores three foundational musical ideas found across piano repertoire: the types of seventh chords, the different cadences [...]

The Chordfather Returns: A Pianist’s Guide to Seventh Chords, Cadences, and Musical Forms2026-06-08T14:37:37+01:00

Understanding Major and Minor Scales and Modes

2026-01-19T09:29:15+00:00

The music that we learn or listen to is usually built on a specific scale or key. Normally it will be in a major or a minor key. Most beginner students will be familiar with the major scale and also the minor scale. In the western culture our ears are naturally tuned to the major scale sound or the well known Do-Re-Me-Fa system or Tonic solfa system, as it's called. This was popularised by the song called ‘Doe a dear a female dear’ from the classic movie ‘The Sound of Music’. The major scale has a set series of wholetones and [...]

Understanding Major and Minor Scales and Modes2026-01-19T09:29:15+00:00
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